


For the Best

by hollyandvice (hiasobi_writes)



Series: Holly's Round Eight H/C Bingo Card [30]
Category: Wicked - Schwartz/Holzman
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-10-22
Packaged: 2019-01-21 12:34:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12457890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hiasobi_writes/pseuds/hollyandvice
Summary: It's always Nessa.A look at Elphaba's relationship with Nessa through the years.





	For the Best

It's always Nessa.

Somehow, that's all Elphaba can think as Nessa's chair spins and turns, moving across the courtyard toward her. Nessa is the one she'd do anything for, and Nessa is the one she reveals herself for. It's always Nessa, and Elphaba can't even say that she minds. She'd do anything for Nessa, and if revealing her powers is the only way to keep her precious sister at her side, then so be it; she'll reveal her powers.

It's not enough. Morrible mollifies her, tempts her with words of the Wizard, and for all that Elphaba wants to argue, she can't disagree that Nessa might be better off with the Headmistress than with her. So she bows her head and stands aside, letting her sister go.

It's for the best.

——

It's always Nessa.

Somehow that's all Elphaba can think as she feels her heart finally weaken to the possibility that Galinda isn't everything Elphaba had thought her to be. If Nessa truly thinks there is something good in her, then perhaps Elphaba was the one in the wrong. So she turns to Galinda and feels her heart weaken even as something in the back of her mind questions Galinda's motives. This can't be all there is to her words, to her actions, and yet Elphaba can't see any ulterior motive. So she gives in.

It's not enough. The hat is a ruse and the dance is a mistake and even when things seem to turn out alright she can't help but be certain that she's still misstepped horribly. Even as Nessa's eyes tell a different story, even as Galinda's actions ease her out of a shell she's never wanted to leave, she can't help but feel like the whole thing is a distraction, taking her focus away from what's really important. And yet, perhaps if she plays along, if she lets Galinda lift her to new heights, things will be easier for Nessa too. Perhaps she can redeem herself for what Nessa and their mother went through. Perhaps she can make some tiny difference in the grand scheme of things.

It's for the best.

——

It's always Nessa.

Somehow, that's all Elphaba can think as she watches in horror as her sister snatches the Grimmerie, mangling the words as she chokes out a spell that would be beyond even Elphaba's own powers, she can tell. The realization drags at her body, keeping her rooted in place as the spell goes horribly, horribly wrong.

It's not enough. Even as she takes back the Grimmerie, even as she tries to repair the damage Nessa has done, it's not enough, for Boq, or for Nessa. And yet again she finds herself turning away, turning aside, stepping back. Nessa has always deserved the best, and it's always Elphaba that steals it from her. So she steps away, steps aside, and vows never to cross her sister's path again.

It's for the best.

——

It's always Nessa.

Somehow, that's all Elphaba can think as she stands with her sister's body at her back, her former best friend across from her, and a child between her and the so-called Wizard. She never meant for any of this to happen, never meant for anyone to get hurt, and yet, somewhere deep down, she knows there was no way around it. _No good deed_ and there's nothing to do but run when Fiyero gives her the opening.

It's not enough. It wasn't enough to save Nessa and it's not enough to save Fiyero and she's lost Galinda and it was never, ever enough. So she runs and she hides and she plans and plans and plans and even though she knows it still won't be enough in the end, she'll do her damnedest because that's all she has left.

It's for the best.

It's for the best.

**Author's Note:**

> Unbeta'ed. Part of my Round Eight H/C Bingo Card. [Come hang with me on tumblr!](http://hollyandvice.tumblr.com/)


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